The Campaign for Grinnell College

Solutions for Large Donations

The Advantages of a Charitable Remainder Trust

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Discover which type of charitable trust best fits your estate plan with the FREE guide Trusts: Choose From Two Ways to Donate.View My Free Brochure

Looking for a way to give the College a significant gift? If you have built up a sizeable estate and are also looking for ways to receive reliable payments, you may want to check out the advantages of setting up a charitable remainder trust.

Benefits of a charitable remainder trust include:

  • Potential for a partial charitable income tax deduction
  • Potential for increased income
  • Up-front capital gains tax avoidance

There are two ways to receive payments with charitable remainder trusts:

The unitrust pays you, each year, a variable amount based on a fixed percentage of the fair market value of the trust assets. The amount of your payments is redetermined annually. If the value of the trust increases, so do your payments. If the value decreases, however, so will your payments.

The annuity trust pays you, each year, the same dollar amount that is established at the start. Your payments stay the same, regardless of fluctuations in trust investments.

Check Out This Potential Scenario

Woman happySusan wants to make a gift to the College but would also like more income in the future. Susan creates a charitable remainder unitrust with annual lifetime payments to her equal to 5% of the fair market value of the trust assets as revalued annually. She funds the trust with assets valued at $500,000.

Susan receives $25,000 the first year from the trust. Subsequent payment amounts vary each year depending on the annual valuations of the trust assets. She is eligible for a federal income tax charitable deduction of $303,245* in the year she creates and funds the trust. This deduction saves Susan $97,038 in her 32% tax bracket.

*Based on a 5.2% charitable midterm federal rate. Deductions and calculations will vary depending on your personal circumstances.

Retired Engineer Shares His Love of the Liberal Arts With Students in the Sciences

George and Marijke GuerinWhen George Guerin '51 and his wife Marijke were looking to invest some Kellogg stock they had accumulated over the years, the couple decided to invest in the education of Grinnell students in the sciences. They chose to do so through two planned giving vehicles — a Charitable Remainder Trust (CRT) and a Charitable Gift Annuity (CGA). These allow the Guerins to transfer stock to Grinnell and fund a scholarship, while providing them tax deductions plus quarterly income.

Guerin is a retired engineering and project manager who spent nearly three decades working for Kellogg's. He named the Grinnell scholarship is named in honor of his father, Herbert Guerin, who set George on the path of broadening his mind through the liberal arts.

"My father interviewed and recruited engineering students for the company he worked for, and he felt many didn't have enough knowledge in English, philosophy, or the fine arts to communicate properly," explained Guerin.

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Learn How to Fund It

You can use the following assets to fund a charitable remainder trust:

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Next Steps

  1. Contact Buddy Boulton at 866-850-1846 or PG@grinnell.edu to talk about supporting the College by setting up a charitable remainder trust.
  2. Seek the advice of your financial or legal advisor.
  3. If you include the College in your plans, please use our legal name and federal tax ID.

Legal Name: Trustees of Grinnell College
Address: 733 Broad Street, Grinnell IA 50112
Federal Tax ID Number: 42-0680387

A charitable bequest is one or two sentences in your will or living trust that leave to Grinnell College a specific item, an amount of money, a gift contingent upon certain events or a percentage of your estate.

an individual or organization designated to receive benefits or funds under a will or other contract, such as an insurance policy, trust or retirement plan

"I give to Grinnell College, a nonprofit corporation currently located at 733 Broad Street, Grinnell IA 50112, or its successor thereto, ______________ [written amount or percentage of the estate or description of property] for its unrestricted use and purpose."

able to be changed or cancelled

A revocable living trust is set up during your lifetime and can be revoked at any time before death. They allow assets held in the trust to pass directly to beneficiaries without probate court proceedings and can also reduce federal estate taxes.

cannot be changed or cancelled

tax on gifts generally paid by the person making the gift rather than the recipient

the original value of an asset, such as stock, before its appreciation or depreciation

the growth in value of an asset like stock or real estate since the original purchase

the price a willing buyer and willing seller can agree on

The person receiving the gift annuity payments.

the part of an estate left after debts, taxes and specific bequests have been paid

a written and properly witnessed legal change to a will

the person named in a will to manage the estate, collect the property, pay any debt, and distribute property according to the will

A donor advised fund is an account that you set up but which is managed by a nonprofit organization. You contribute to the account, which grows tax-free. You can recommend how much (and how often) you want to distribute money from that fund to the College or other charities. You cannot direct the gifts.

An endowed gift can create a new endowment or add to an existing endowment. The principal of the endowment is invested and a portion of the principal’s earnings are used each year to support our mission.

Tax on the growth in value of an asset—such as real estate or stock—since its original purchase.

Securities, real estate, or any other property having a fair market value greater than its original purchase price.

Real estate can be a personal residence, vacation home, timeshare property, farm, commercial property, or undeveloped land.

A charitable remainder trust provides you or other named individuals income each year for life or a period not exceeding 20 years from assets you give to the trust you create.

You give assets to a trust that pays our organization set payments for a number of years, which you choose. The longer the length of time, the better the potential tax savings to you. When the term is up, the remaining trust assets go to you, your family or other beneficiaries you select. This is an excellent way to transfer property to family members at a minimal cost.

You fund this type of trust with cash or appreciated assets—and may qualify for a federal income tax charitable deduction when you itemize. You can also make additional gifts; each one also qualifies for a tax deduction. The trust pays you, each year, a variable amount based on a fixed percentage of the fair market value of the trust assets. When the trust terminates, the remaining principal goes to the College as a lump sum.

You fund this trust with cash or appreciated assets—and may qualify for a federal income tax charitable deduction when you itemize. Each year the trust pays you or another named individual the same dollar amount you choose at the start. When the trust terminates, the remaining principal goes to the College as a lump sum.

A beneficiary designation clearly identifies how specific assets will be distributed after your death.

A charitable gift annuity involves a simple contract between you and the College where you agree to make a gift to the College and we, in return, agree to pay you (and someone else, if you choose) a fixed amount each year for the rest of your life.
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